Nancy Tilly,

Former Bee Journalist, Dies At 67

Nancy T. Tilly, known to many in Newtown as an editor and reporter for The Newtown Bee in the 1970s, died March 8 at the age of 67. She had been living with her daughter, Kristen Collins, in Falls Village.

Born Nancy Gaye Tully on September 26, 1932 in New Castle, Penn., she was daughter of Robert and Helen Tully.  She was educated at the Katharine Gibbs School.

In the years that she worked in Newtown at The Bee, Nancy Tilly gained a reputation as a reporter and editor who wielded a sharp pencil and an even sharper sense of humor. Tough minded and exacting in her work, she had a hearty laugh and a sensitivity for people that quickly won her many friends in Newtown. She covered almost all of community life in her reporting, taking on several beats over the years, including coverage of politics, police, education, and cultural events.

She was devoted to her family and to her town. For many years she served as an emergency medical technician and as an officer for the Newtown Ambulance Association.

She is survived by her four children: David Tilly of Cotuit, Mass; Kristen Collins of Falls Village; Eric Tilly of Danbury; and Susan Contreras of Johnstone, R.I.; and four grandchildren, Jason Collins, Laura and Joey Cimini, and Alyeska Tilly. She is also survived by her sister, Susan Wright, of St Simons, Ga. and her companion, Irv Farrar of Bella Vista, Ark.

Memorial donations may be sent to Hospice of Northwestern Connecticut, PO Box 625, Sharon, CT 06069, or to the American Cancer Society, Breast Cancer Donations, 31 Capitol Drive, West Springfield, MA 01089.

The Newtown Bee         March 17, 2000